


when i saw the night

by notverygoodattitles



Category: Hollow Knight (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, Human AU but not Quite, Mentions of Death, but yeah modern au anyone?, some other characters are just Mentioned like once
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-17
Updated: 2019-04-17
Packaged: 2020-01-15 12:57:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,444
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18499426
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/notverygoodattitles/pseuds/notverygoodattitles
Summary: Angel "Hornet" Beist is fifteen when she sees her sibling hunched over their kitchen counter and presumably, dying.She's only been here for practically a day. She's not even sure how or why these things happen anymore.





	when i saw the night

**Author's Note:**

> hi!!! a few notes since written human aus dont seem too common round here:  
> hornet is only a nickname. angel's her given name but she thinks hornet sounds cooler  
> the knight/little ghost's name is gabi!  
> they also all live in the philippines because... i don't know what other countries are like lol. but yeah!

Angel “Hornet” Beist is fifteen when she walks downstairs to find a plate full of pancakes on the table, a pan on the floor and her sibling hunched over the counter, coughing and clutching their chest.

For some reason, her sibling chose the day after she moved in to suddenly contract something fatal.

“Gabi?” She runs down the stairs, not bothering to put on her slippers. “What happened?”

Gabi looks at her with wide eyes, before offering her a thumbs up.

Hornet looks them over once before echoing her thoughts. “You look dead.

They pause, before shrugging. After a second of silence passes, they jolt and shake their head violently. They raise a curved hand to their mouth, before turning it outwards, huffing a little.

Somehow, Hornet is reminded of someone who ate something spicy. She tilts her head.

Gabi scratches the back of their head before using their free hand to fingerspell to her. “ _Sorry. Forgot u don’t know_.”

“Ah- that isn’t an issue.” Hornet’s eyes darts back and forth between the stairs and her sibling. “Are you alright, then? Is it too much to spell out?”

Gabi puts a finger on their mouth before nodding once, and then nodding again. Yes to both questions, then.

“I’ll get a notebook-” Her sibling wheezes and lies down on the floor. “Gabi, are you certain you don’t need to go to the hospital?”

She only gets a strained smile in response.

Hornet sighs. “I suppose I'll get the first paper I find.”

* * *

Somehow, Gabi feels as if they’ve screwed up somehow.

_Well, not that it'd be much of a surprise._

A part of them is starting to regret walking away from their family. From Puto. A part of them regrets even more that they allowed the situation to get this bad. Bad enough they had to leave.

They remember briefly what Puto told them on the day before they left. The day where everything changed.

" _It is our duty_ ." Puto was dressed in the pure white armor that day. The color made Gabi remember the rice cake their nickname came from. Not that they ever called them that. " _And we must follow it._ "

They remembered the swirling in their chest. How their movements were bigger than they should be. " _This can't be everything we should live up to!_ "

Puto held Gabi's shoulder, looking them straight in the eye.

" _For the greater good._ "

Gabi wonders if defying your purpose could be part of the greater good. _Their_ greater good, at least.

"Gabi, I found paper. And a crayon."

They jolt, before giving Angel a small smile and a nod. They gesture for her to wait, before pointing towards the pitcher of water.

Angel tilts her head, before shrugging and placing the pitcher in front of them.

This may have been their other mistake. Taking in their half-sibling they’ve barely met. Not that they'd ever tell her that. They just didn't want her staying with the White Lady (their mom, not the ghost). All they want to give her is a normal life their parents couldn’t provide.

The only regret they have is that they have no idea how to take care of a child. Now the child is taking care of them.

They turn to Angel, mimics drinking from a glass, then points towards a cabinet.

Angel nods and shuffles over to the cabinet. "You want some water, I assume."

She pauses. Glancing towards the pancakes, she asks, "Did you happen to eat them right after you cooked them?"

Gabi grins at her and nods.

They finally understand her nickname. Getting called out by a teenager stings.

* * *

Thirty minutes later, Hornet was busy slathering butter on her pancakes. Meanwhile, Gabi was absentmindedly pouring syrup on their plate. Their gaze was focused on shuffling through a stack of papers.

She eyes the papers as she cuts up her food. They're filled different stationary, along with highlighted areas.

She then turns her attention to her sibling's plate. "Gabi, I think your breakfast is more syrup than pancake."

Gabi looks at their plate. The sight of it causes their face to scrunch up.

They sigh and push the plate towards Hornet.

She tilts her head. "Would you like me to wash it?"

Gabi shakes their head. They raise a fork, pointing it to their mouth, before gesturing to her.

"Oh. You're offering it to me?" After they nod, Hornet shakes her head. "I'm afraid I don't have the space."

Gabi shrugs, wincing as they take the plate back. Setting the letters aside, they take out the paper Hornet got earlier and write, passing it to her when finished.

_Have you been homeschooled?_

"Since my mother left, yes." Hornet tilts her head as she passes it back. "Is there any reason for asking?"

They nod. _What grade level would you be right now?_

"Grade ten."

_Do you think you're ready? To enroll._

Hornet snorts. "If pigs could fly, I would be, yes."

Gabi gives her a flat look.

She sighs. "To be frank, I would much rather stay at home. I don't know the streets or the people here. After a while, maybe. Now? No."

Gabi nods, giving her a thumbs up. _Do you want me to wash your plate?_

Hornet blinks, before shaking her head. "No, it's alright. I can handle it."

They squint at her. _No, really. It's fine. This breakfast was more of a celebration for you._

"Celebration for what?"

_For coming here. I understand we aren't familiar with each other but_

"It wasn't really my choice."

Gabi stops writing. They turn to Hornet, who avoids their gaze. "Miss Roots told me she had to leave, and you offered to take me in."

_I'm sorry. I didn't realize._

Hornet shakes her head. "She didn't tell you?"

_All she told me was that her stepchild wanted to live somewhere else._

"I didn't. But she told me things would get even more dangerous than I’d realize." She sighs, laying her head on the table. "She offered to bring me back to my father, but I said no. So she asked if I would prefer to stay with you."

_Why?_

"Our father lives in a rather secluded place, doesn't he?" She twirls her fork. "I wouldn't be able to live normally. I didn't live normally with Miss Roots either, but I could still go to town if I wanted. There, I'd be isolated."

_Do you regret coming?_

She pauses. "You make good pancakes, at least."

Gabi offers her a small smile. _Thank you._

* * *

It’s been a week since Hornet started living with her sibling. Compared to what she’s used to, her home is cramped. Every inch of the house feels full. Notebooks, papers, bags and random trinkets fill the floors and shelves. It felt nothing like a big mansion with a vast garden.

Her sibling, Gabi, is even stranger to her. Every conversation with them has always been with a smile on their face. It’s somehow an unnatural sight. She’s seen them more relaxed, or rather, more stoic without her presence. Their cheery expression becomes one of nonchalance. The difference in conduct is somehow unnerving. Her only reassurance is that they’re nice, regardless of who’s around.

Despite her worries, she’s glad her neighborhood isn’t quiet. Outside the window, a vendor on the street calls out. “ _Ho! Taho!_ ”

Hornet looks up from her phone and looks outside. The sight makes her eyes light up. “I hadn’t realized they came here as well.”

Gabi follows her eyes. In her lap, her phone begins to buzz.

 

 **Gabi** \- 7:03 am

he usually comes in the morning

and i have 25 pesos

do you want taho?

 **You** \- 7:04 am

You don’t have to trouble yourself.

I’m only curious

 **Gabi** \- 7:04 am

ok ill give you 50 get 1 for me and 1 for you

 

 **You** \- 7:04 am

Why?

 **Gabi** \- 7:05 am

angel im sick of looking at work

pls follow your older sibling

 **You** \- 7:05 am

Where’s the money?

 **Gabi** \- 7:06 am

ill get it thank you :)

 

When Hornet looks up again, she sees Gabi give her a thumbs up as they run upstairs. She witholds a sigh. It’s seven in the morning and her sibling was raring to go. She can’t understand morning people.

A few minutes pass. The vendor is still shouting. Gabi is still upstairs, shuffling about as they search for their wallet. The table they were using has their laptop left open, along with several papers.

 **You** \- 7:09 am

Will you take long?

 **Gabi** \- 7:10 am

idk

do you have money? i can pay you back later

 

Hornet eyes the papers as she types.

 **You** \- 7:11 am

It’s fine. I can wait for you.

 **Gabi** \- 7:11 am

ty hornet <3

 

She slips the phone in her pocket as she walks to the table. Taking a closer look, the papers are letters- or perhaps handwritten notes. Various words are highlighted, encircled, while even smaller words fill in the margins.

The topmost letter is barely legible, save for any word highlighted, encircled, or in the margins. She huffs. Just her luck.

She squints at the margins. The letters were all scrunched together. It was legible, but that was it. Although.

_daughterof beistiscalled hornet she_

This was terrible handwriting.

Hornet eyes the stairs. The shuffling is even quieter now. She lifts the letter to peek at the one behind it.

The letter below is filled with what she assumes is cold, black ink. She retracts her dirtied hand, making a face.

The sound of footsteps descending fills her ears. She quickly fixes the letters as best as she can with her clean hand before running over to the kitchen sink.

Not a moment after she opens the tap, she hears Gabi knock on the wall. She turns to see them waving a fifty peso bill, while pointing to the door.

“I’ll be there in a moment. I just need to wash my hands.”

From behind her, she can hear the shuffling of papers. The next thing she hears is tapping on what she presumes is a phone, because next she feels a notification from hers.

 

 **Gabi** \- 7:17 am

did you touch my stuff?

i’m not going to get mad i just want to know

 

She feels sweat trickle on her back. "Why?"

 

 **Gabi** \- 7:18 am

just bc its confidential so you cant talk about it online

 

"I hadn't realized _I_ was confidential."

There’s a pause between them before they reply.

 

 **Gabi** \- 7:27 am

angel, how much did you read?

 

“Not enough,” she murmurs. “All I read was my name.”

 

 **Gabi** \- 7:28 am

ok

well

did you read my laptop?

 

“No.”

 

 **Gabi** \- 7:29 am

good

 

There’s a pause between them.

 

 **Gabi** \- 7:30

i know this isnt on your mind anymore but i dont think the kuya selling taho is still there

and hornet

thats a letter from my mom so don’t worry about it

 

Hornet looks at her hand. The ink is barely visible now.  
  
She feels a tap behind her. Turning around, she sees her sibling smile and gesture to the door.

 

 **Gabi** \- 7:31 am

do you want to see if 711 has anything?

 

Hornet is quiet for a moment. “Why are you smiling?”

Gabi blinks.

 

 **Gabi** \- 7:30 am

im allowed to smile right

 

“I’ve only seen you smile around me.” She grits her teeth. “It looks rather forced, if you haven’t realized.”

Their smile falters, if only a bit.

 

 **Gabi** \- 7:31 am

its not!

 

“You asked me if I regretted coming here.” Hornet turns to look at them with a frown. “Now I think that I should have been the one who asked that instead.”

From the corner of her eye, she can see Gabi typing. She tucks the phone inside her pocket and runs to her room.

 

This of course, was more or less entirely ineffective as half the conversation was textual. The most Hornet can do is mute her notifications.

This isn’t _running_ , she tells herself. Not at all. She only needs a moment to think.

Hornet closes her eyes. Gods, she wants a break. She can’t keep up with the whiplash and niceties. She really, really wishes her sibling was a ghost. Nice and transparent. Not an ambiguous mess who she can’t understand. Then again, that was over half the human population.

She’s really tired of all this.

A muffled, robotic voice breaks her out of her thoughts. “Anghel.”

Hornet pointedly ignores the fact her sibling is choosing Siri of all things, to talk to her. _Please just text me. She’s even pronouncing it wrong._

“What is it. And- don’t even use Siri again, just text me.”

 

 **Gabi** \- 8:01 am

read up

 

And so she does.

 

 **Gabi** \- 7:32 am

angel youre not a mistake

wait fuck you left

hornet?

angel?

 

 **Gabi** \- 7:40 am

is your phone on silent

ok that’s a yes

i should probably explain right..?

well

i offered to take you in and i don’t regret it at all

i am not exaggerating when i say you’re the only reason i try to make it back safe and early

i know i’ve only known you a short time but i want you to know that

and for the fake smiling

im sorry

my mom told me you were lonely

and what happened.

i didn’t mean to keep it a secret

but i wanted to make you comfortable here

we’ve never met before but it’s my duty to keep you safe

and i would really like and want you to be happy

so i thought i needed to smile and act like that

like one of those adults from the sitcoms or something

but youre not a kid anymore

so she said i dont need to worry

i dont generally emote so i thought itd make you uncomfortable

but i never asked you and now we’re here and none of us is having taho

sorry thats too dragged out now

and sorry for making this misunderstanding

if you want to go back i won’t stop you

 

She pauses. “Gabi?”

 

 **Gabi** \- 8:13 am

yes?

 

Hornet takes a deep breath. “It’s… alright. But I’d rather you don’t keep a secret like that again. I understand I’m much younger than you, but it still concerns me.”

 

 **Gabi** \- 8:15 am

gotcha

is that it..?

 

“I appreciate that you admit you’ve done something wrong, at least. Though I appreciate you considering pleasantries.”

 

 **Gabi** \- 8:17 am

aha yeah…

smiling started becoming a habit actually

 

“And to make it clear-” She says, nearly raising her voice. “I don’t want your pity.”

 

 **Gabi** \- 8:18 am

this wasn’t pity

its called concern

 

Hornet rolls her eyes. “We’ve known each other for a week at most.”

 

 **Gabi** \- 8:18 am

i’ll care and be concerned for whoever i want

 

“Fine. Frankly, that’s ridiculous, but fine.” She huffs. “And one last thing. I’ll stay for now. You honestly aren’t a bad person, just… a confused, small adult.”

 

 **Gabi** \- 8:19

really?????

thank you hornet!!!!!

ill do my best

so speak up if something like this is troubling you again okay?

and also, i’m not small

 

“Of course. And Gabi? You’re more like a ghost now.”

 

 **Gabi** \- 8:20

???????

 

“Transparent. And small.”

 

 **Gabi** \- 8:20

no

 

“Can we go and get taho, little ghost?”

 

 **Gabi** \- 8:20

i dont want to be called out like this. please

 

Hornet ignores them, opening the door to see Gabi crouched on the ground. She smirk and stands straight. "Listen to your big sister, little sibling."

Gabi holds their head in their hands.

* * *

It's been six months since Hornet started living with Gabi. Somehow, she feels less tied down. It’s been much more exhilarating compared to when she was with her step-mother and her knight. Then again, she now has more than two people to talk to.

She lulls these thoughts over as she fumbles with her keys.

She heaves a sigh as she unlocks the door. She tosses her backpack on the couch, her body following it.

From there, Hornet opens her phone. _1:00_ _pm_. For a few hours, she'll have the whole house to herself.

She hums, sending a quick text over to Gabi telling them she's home early. She switches to her class’ group chat after, munching on a sandwich from her bag.

 

 **queen almighty** \- 12:45 pm

Guyssss has anyone seen my airpods :(

Dont sad react omg

 **Deli Mantis** \- 12:47 pm

Have you checked the lost and found

 **queen almighty** \- 12:48 pm

YES BUT THEY TOLD ME NOT TO GO THERE

 **Deli** **Mantis** \- 12:48 pm

Sad reaccs only

 **paruparu aspid** \- 12:49 pm

HAHAHAHA i have it

Btw does anyone have answers for the math homework yesterday

 **paruparu aspid** \- 12:59 pm

Seenzoned :(

 **Me** \- 1:03 pm

No

 **paruparu aspid** \- 1:05 pm

I'll pay u

 **Me** \- 1:07 pm

Bye, I'm going to do English homework

 **paruparu aspid** \- 1:07 pm

WE HAVE HOMEWORK FOR ENGLISH???

 **Maya** \- 1:08 pm

oof

 

Hornet snorts as she shuts off her phone. She takes out her worksheets and reads them over. Humming, she scribbles down her answers as fast as she can.

It takes her 15 minutes before she realizes her pen ran out of ink. She groans as she heads upstairs. Now, of all times?

Walking into her room, she hears a distant _thump_ behind her. A knot fills her stomach.

When she turns, the hallway is empty.

 _Thump._ Next comes a _splash_ . _Squelch_.

The next thing she knows, she sees black ink outside her sibling's room.

 _Deep breaths._ She grabs her phone and watches her fingers fly.

 **Me** \- 1:23 pm

Gabi, something's in your room.

 

She stares at their room with her breath lodged in her throat. Distantly, she can hear a ping.

 

 **Gabi** \- 1:25 pm

are you home?

oh sorry i just saw your text

what's in my room?

 **Me** \- 1:27 pm

I don't know. It's black and ink like.

And I can hear something.

 **Gabi** \- 1:28 pm

oh

 

She raises an eyebrow.

 

 

 **Gabi** \- 1:29 pm

sorry hornet that was me

 

What.

 **Me** \- 1:29 pm

What.

 **Gabi** \- 1:32 pm

ink spilled on the floor… sorry

i'll clean it up later

 **Me** \- 1:35 pm

I thought you were at work?

 **Gabi** \- 1:35 pm

i dropped by for a bit

i needed to get something

 **Me** \- 1:37 pm

Ghost, how much ink did you spill?

Why do you have ink?

 **Gabi** \- 1:40 pm

too much did :((

don't worry just try not to step on it

 **Me** \- 1:41 pm

Sure.

 

Hornet walks towards the ink, inspecting it closer. She crouches down, poking it with her dead pen.

The ink reacts like slime. Her poke leaves an indent on the surface, before reverting back. She stares at it for a brief moment before she realizes it’s spreading. She hastily stands up.

She tries to step back, but the slime-ink is far too caught in whatever-it-is to move. It feels like fog and mist, if it were black and had the near consistency of cotton.

 

 **Me** \- 1:45 pm

Ghost I'm caught in it.

 **Gabi** \- 1:47 pm

thats you???

wait hold on

 

Hornet hisses, trying again. It sticks to her like glue. She gives her feet a firm tug before she feels the slime loosen and suddenly release her completely. She grasps air as she begins to fall.

Somehow, she feels her hand catch something- and for something to catch her.  


The next thing she knows, Hornet is in her room. A stranger clothed in black sits at the edge toying with their phone. Their face is shadowed by their silver hair. The dark makes their white eyes look like they’re glowing.

She squints. Somehow, they look familiar.  "Who…?"

The stranger looks back. Hornet realizes that their eyes really _are_ glowing. She rubs her eyes. If only she had sunglasses.

Meanwhile, the stranger tilts their head, pointing to her phone's lock screen.

 

 **Gabi** \- 2:10 pm

hi, hornet.

when you wake up: don't freak out

 

Hornet pales. The stranger- no, _Gabi_ \- gives her a meek smile. Waving.

She inches closer before her eyes widen. Their clothes were the same color as they were before. Instead, black mist surrounds them. They were practically shrouded in it. The sight briefly reminds Hornet of someone who’s lost something. Someone hollow.

"Ghost… who are you?"

Their forehead creases, before they shake their head. They then scribble in a notebook she hadn't realized was on her bed.

_I'm Gabi. Night. Night that conquers the radiant day._

**Author's Note:**

> hi thanks for reading until the end!!! i hope you liked it!!! this is me trying to wrestle with my writers block so some parts are probably.. less eloquent than id like orz. the goal was to finish something though!! so id say im on my way to doing it  
> some extra notes:  
> puto is basically THK the boss. puto is also a rice cake  
> im also terrible at names but yeAH!!!  
> taho is really good. its tofu with sweet syrup or something and sago. try it sometime if you can!  
> also please feel free to ask if something doesn't make sense!!! i'm planning to continue this [eventually.... i'm sort of trying to think about whether to ignore silksong as i write bc well, theres not enough info to go on] so i don't want things to be weird!!


End file.
